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Advanced Tricks

Advanced Tricks by Jocko - I'm sure that you have all heard about the basic Indo tricks, stuff like simple shuvits, varials and other tricks taken from skateboarding, but if you open up your mind and get creative, you can think of many more Indo Board tricks, for example:

- Fun and Easy - If you have more than one Indo Board, set up on one and put another Indo roller about 2 feet away to one side, then try to ride your Indo Board from one roller to the other. Just ride all the way off one roller until the tip of your board is over the next roller, then just commit to the transfer and roll onto the new roller. We are now experimenting with turning the different rollers 45 or 90 degrees to each other to make it more difficult and to turn the ride around the room.

- Slider Practice - Line up the Indo Board lengthwise or 50/50 along the roller, not side to side. Ride it like you would a snowboard. Imagine coming up to a slider, popping up to frontside lipslide and coming back. To imitate this on the Indo Board, you have to be riding it 50/50, then ollie slightly, just enough to take most of your weight off of the board but not enough to lose touch with the board and push it over 90 degrees to the lipslide (boardslide) and balance and then come back to 50/50. This trick is such a crowd pleaser because everyone can identify with a lipslide (snowboarders, skateboarders, etc.).

- Advanced Grabs - Try to grab a nose press, this is cool. Indo Board 50/50 with your front foot on the front of the board, but over the edge of the roller. Then press down on your front foot to push the board into a nose press and come back down. See how long you can hold a 50/50 nose press. (You should hook the wooden lip on the bottom of your Indo Board over the edge of the roller to keep the board from sliding forward when you press up.) Then try it riding really low, bend your knees and get closer to the board. When you press up into the nose press, the tail of the board will come right up into your back hand, try to grab it. I can hold it for about a second, but that one second is pretty hairy. Anytime you put your fingers near rollers and wood, you're asking for trouble, but sometimes I go out looking for trouble. This is where I can find it. I've busted on this trick so many times, but it's still so damn fun.

- Super Hard Death Trick - Stand the roller on end and balance the board across the top. Then jump up onto the board and balance. Then lean forward enough to make the roller topple over, but back far enough on your heels to land balanced on the board and on the roller when it all falls. If your timing is right, you can land on the board and on the roller. This trick is so hard, but it's so cool. I've even seen it done with a 180 shuvit at the top, jump up, do the shuvit and then topple it and ride it to the roller. To practice this trick, we've installed a handle right above the Indo Board so you can practice without injury.

- Balance Tricks - Practice stepping up onto the board 50/50 onto only one foot and learn to balance on both right and left feet independently, then practice one foot balance tricks. It's all in the ankle, heel to toe for balance. Once you can isolate the motion to your ankle, you will free up the rest of your body. What I do is step onto the board 50/50 with one foot, say my left foot, and get my balance. Then I'll slowly cross my right leg across my left knee and bend my left leg to lower my center of gravity over the board. I'll press down as low as I can go balancing on one leg, usually till my knee is about 90 degrees, then press back up. The do it again on the other leg. The key is to learn to isolate your ankle motions from your knee and hip motions. This will give you much better board control with your ankles. (Plus is builds your calf muscles huge!) Then try to one foot a Karate Kid or a Switch Karate Kid, you know the position I'm talking about. Also VERY IMPORTANT - learning to balance on one foot using your ankles for balance will open up so many tricks for you. This enables you to freely move around your board, lifting one foot to place it in position for a new trick. One foot balance is probably the most important part of Indoing, and so often it's overlooked. Practice this and you will be able to do so many more tricks that require you to be able to set up into a certain position.

- Mixing It Up - It seems that linking tricks together is the most fun on an Indo Board. We've taken a basic body varial, jump and spin your body 180 and land on the board, and we've added a surface blind 180 to it. When you land the body varial, keep spinning, come down on the board and bring the board with you for the second 180. It's all one smooth motion, your body does a 360 but the board does a 180. It's a very cool trick, but be careful because there is no safe viewing zone on a trick like this, the board or the rider could go in any direction at any time. Please be careful when doing any kind of 360's on your Indo. One time on a wipeout, our Indo Board went right into the glass front door. It didn't break though, that's because the Indo Board is a very strong board. - Jocko's Pick - Another favorite for me is a 50/50 hang ten nose press. You line up the board lengthwise or 50/50, then, using your one foot balance skills, slowly maneuver your way up to the hang ten position with both feet on the nose of the board riding 50/50. Then basically you press up into a nose press and hold it for as long as you can. You end up looking like Jesus, so maybe we should call it a Crucifiction or something, whatever, it's a cool looking trick and it's tough because you don't want to fall because it's hard to get back into position to try again. But when you stick one, it's like riding a skateboard down a big hill riding hang ten on the nose of the board, what a rush. Happy Indoing! I can't tell you how many hours we've all spent around here just Indoing all night. I think it's like the Hacksack of the boarder generation, everyone gets a turn to show off to a ring of cheering friends, how cool is that to just hang out and vibe with friends? And everyone brings a different style.Peace, Jocko

p.s. - The only Indo trick that I know you should never do is Acid Drops off of the file cabinet. This usually breaks the lips off of the board and eventually cracks the board down the middle and it makes your roller less round. Acid Drops should only be done off of a chair or short coffee table. Live and learn and pass on life's little lessons, your Indo Board will thank you.